This present invention relates to a swing-type amusement ride which has a loading tower for loading the riders high in the air, the loading tower having a 360xc2x0 safety guardrail and wall to prevent falling, wherein disembarkment is done at the ground surface.
Heretofore, there have been a variety of different types of amusement rides and apparatus for simulating the reduction of gravity to a rider. Some of these devices are known to be disclosed in Fitch, U.S. Pat. No. 857,338; Ridgway, U.S. Pat. No. 2,779,596; Ryan, U.S. Pat. No. 3,701,528; Greenwood, U.S. Pat. No. 4,978,120; Kitchen et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,267,906; Kitchen et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,223; and Kitchen, U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,740 (1999).
Furthermore, there have been a variety of playground and backyard swings and swing sets used by children and adults. These swings can vary in height from a small swing standing about three meters high, to a large swing standing about five meters high. A rider of such a swing normally takes a sitting position in a swing seat and starts its pendulum motion from a position in which the swing is vertical, unless aided by a running start, or by a person to help push and enhance the height of the swing arc. While the sitting or standing position on a swing seat is the norm, riders have been known to lie on their stomachs on top of a swing seat and swing in a prone position, but without being secured to the swing.
Even the most skillful and powerful swing rider on a large swing will rarely exceed a 2 o""clock or 10 o""clock position at a height of about seven meters, before gravity overtakes the centrifugal force of the swing, and slack occurs in the swing rope or chain. Should a rider manage to force the swing to make a 360 degree circuit, his or her height would seldom exceed about ten meters from the ground.
The use of external equipment to assist a swing rider to begin his or her ride from an elevated position is taught in Hoppes U.S. Pat. No. 1,731,532; Pruessner U.S. Pat. No. 1,918,559; and Walker U.S. Pat. No. 3,140,870. Each of these references discloses standard playground and backyard type swing systems which have adjacent stairs a person climbs to start swinging from a position above the ground. The rider thereby obtains an immediate swing elevation and experiences an initial speed which is higher and faster than starting to swing from the ground. But, even in these systems the initial height above the ground which the rider experiences would seldom be more than about one to four meters.
Japanese patent no. 36-2475 dated Apr. 1, 1961, to Nogima describes a chair-type swing having a cradle which is pulled to a launch position by a sliding car on rails. However, this device is clumsy in operation and its construction restricts the release height of the chair. Further, the cradle does not spin during operation.
In some swing systems, and especially those designed for small children, and in some amusement rides, bungee jumping equipment, parachute equipment, hang gliding systems, and the like, mechanisms for securing a rider to the equipment is provided. But, none of these systems provide a ride which initiates a rider module release at a height of more than ten meters above the ground. The prior art swing sets have not been large enough, strong enough or high enough to justify the use of a module for riders. Furthermore, prior art swing technology has not been known to operate at heights which allow a rider to reach a height which is greater than about seven to ten meters above the ground, or, other than in a trapeze system, to swing from a xe2x80x9claunchxe2x80x9d structure towards a xe2x80x9csupportxe2x80x9d structure. It is noted that in trapeze systems, the swings are intentionally xe2x80x9chigh above the center ringxe2x80x9d, and never approach the ground.
Kitchen ""906 and Kitchen ""223 disclose an amusement ride and swing-type amusement ride which comprise a support structure, a support line, and a launch structure. However, Kitchen ""906 support the rider(s) in a harness or an equivalent which causes the rider(s) to operate in the prone position. Some persons cannot handle this prone position for a variety of reasons including fear and physical incapacity. Older or physically challenged riders sometimes cannot handle strapping into a harness in a prone position.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,740 (1999) to Kitchen discloses a giant swing ride having a rotating rider module. Rider loading for this ride is preferably done at ground level.
In Kitchen ""223 a multi-rider embodiment referred to as the Skysaucer(trademark) can accommodate up to 120 riders in a saucer suspended from a support structure. However, the Kitchen ""223 riders are seated in a plurality of rows, and the Skysaucer(trademark) does not rotate about the axis of the support lines.
One giant swing ride is known which loads the riders high atop the launch tower. U.S. Pat. No. 1,220,332 (1917) to Happel discloses a launch tower with stairs for the riders to ascend. A two-person chair is hoisted to the top of the launch tower and locked in place. The riders load into the chair. The operator pulls a release handle to launch the chair. However, a dangerous situation is created high above the ground by exposing the riders to falling straight out the front of the chair during the load operation.
The present invention offers the added thrill of mounting the ride high up in the air (like a bungee jump). Simultaneously the present invention creates a 360xc2x0 safety partition around the rider during his load procedure into the rider module.
The main aspect of the present invention is to provide a rider the thrill of loading onto a support line with a harness or a rider module high in the air, and then be launched into a giant swing trajectory.
Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a 360xc2x0 safety partition such as a guardrail around the rider during his load procedure.
It is, therefore, an aspect of the present invention to provide a rider of the subject amusement ride with a sensation of xe2x80x9cbody flightxe2x80x9d.
Another aspect of the present invention is to provide the thrills and excitement of bungee jumping, but without the dangers related to the use of rubber or elastic cords, without the possibility of failing to make harness connections to the support line, and without subjecting the body of the rider to the type of stress borne by a bungee jumper, and without the natural fear of a xe2x80x9cfree fallxe2x80x9d plunge associated with bungee jumping.
Yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide an amusement ride which can be enjoyed by a single rider secured in a single rider module, or by a plurality of riders who may enjoy the thrill of riding together while secured in a multi-rider module.
Yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide an amusement ride which can include a plurality of rider modules to afford simultaneous rides to numerous riders.
Another important aspect of the present invention is to provide a body flight experience for the physically-challenged rider.
Yet a further aspect of the present invention is to furnish an amusement ride which provides smooth, fast acceleration, excitement and thrills, while being a fail safe ride, without the anxiety and trauma related to finding the nerve to jump from an elevated platform in a xe2x80x9cfree fallxe2x80x9d plunge, such as that which is associated with bungee jumping and sky diving.
Another aspect of the present invention is to provide an amusement ride in which the rider swings back and forth in a pendulum-like motion about a dozen times or more before terminating the ride.
Another aspect of the multi-rider embodiment is to provide a means for safely allowing many riders to enjoy the ride together, thus providing a more secure feeling to each rider than the single rider embodiment.
Another aspect of the multi-rider embodiment is to provide a faster and more elevated ride than the single rider embodiment.
Another aspect of the multi-rider embodiment is to allow more riders to be serviced in a given time than the single rider embodiment, thereby providing greater revenue to the operator.
Other aspects of this invention will appear from the following description and appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification wherein like reference characters designate corresponding parts in the several views.
The present invention provides a module-type amusement ride for loading one or more riders in a rider module atop a launch tower and launch from a position high aloft from a height of ten meters or more. The rider module is released to swing in a curved trajectory for thrill and excitement, but with little or no stress placed on the body of the rider(s). The amusement ride includes a support structure extending upwardly at least eleven meters above the ground (and as much as several hundred meters or more). The support structure may be a static tower, a static derrick, a static arch, a bridge, other static man-made structures, a crane, naturally occurring geological formations, and the like.
One end of a rider module support line is secured to the upper portion of the support structure at a point which is at least eleven meters from the ground, while the second end of the rider module support line is secured to a rider module securing attachment, to which a rider module can be secured during the ride. The rider module may comprise a seat or a sling which puts a rider in a seated position. A plurality of rider modules may be attached to a support structure in this manner. In preferred embodiments, one end of a second line, which is used as a stabilization line, is also secured to the upper portion of the support structure, while the second end of the stabilization line is also secured to the attachment which secures the rider module during the ride.
The rider module may comprise a chair assembly, a rotating outward facing chair module or a harness or a sling. The chair assembly comprises a plurality of chairs in a frame with rider restraints and a retaining bar similar to a ski-lift chair. The harness assembly is as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,223 to Kitchen, FIGS. 6 and 7 (column 9, lines 37 to column 10, line 13 and column 11, lines 14 through 33), incorporated herein by reference. The sling is related to the harness but contains the non-obvious improvement of supporting the rider in a seated position. This is accomplished by attaching the sling to the stabilization line and support line at a point center-front on the rider. Each rider module embodiment may be interchanged with each of the others for the purposes of ride operation.
Disposed near the support structure is an upright launch structure having an upper portion which is spaced from the upper portion of the support structure. The launch structure may also be a static tower, a static derrick, a static arch, a bridge, other static man-made structures, a crane, naturally occurring geological formations, man made geological formations, and the like, which have an upper portion which has a height which reaches or exceeds at least eleven meters from the ground (and as much as several hundred meters or more). A plurality of launch towers may be used to accommodate the embodiment having a plurality of rider modules. Further, the launch tower may be attached to the top of the support structure to reduce the size of the footprint of the ride.
The upper portion of the launch structure carries a launch line which has a free end which is capable of being lowered and of being raised to a height which reaches or exceeds at least ten meters above the ground. In the plurality of rider modules embodiment, each rider module has its own launch line. One end of the launch line is designed to be releasably attached to the swivel on the rider module. As detailed below, the launch line is capable of raising a rider module which is releasably secured to an attachment to a height of at least eleven meters above the ground. The launch line is attached to the release device, preferably a quick release device.
In operation, the riders walk or take an elevator to the top of the launch tower. The ride launch tower crew places each rider in the rider module or harness or sling each of which is supported by the support line. The crew next releases the launch line from the rider module, and launches the rider by various means. After the ride operators then re-connect the launch line to retract the rider module towards the launch structure at a controlled speed. This causes the rider module to be raised towards the launch structure. If the rider module is properly connected to the support and/or stabilization lines, then at this time the rider module will be raised aloft from the ground. The rider module will be suspended from the support structure by the support and/or stabilization lines and from the launch structure by the launch line. As a fail safe measure, if the rider module is not properly connected to the support and/or stabilization lines, then at this time, the rider module will be pulled laterally. It will not be immediately raised aloft from the ground, and the operation can be terminated. As the launch line continues to be retracted towards the launch structure at a controlled speed, the rider module without rider(s) is raised in a curved path further and further from the ground, towards the launch structure and away from the support structure.
The launch tower crew then secures the rider module for the load operation.
In preferred embodiments, the support line is made of an aircraft-quality stainless-steel cable with safety in mind. Most importantly, the ride does not depend on the use of rubber and elastic bungee cords. As used herein, the xe2x80x9cgroundxe2x80x9d may be an actual ground surface, or a man made surface such as pavement, tarmac, or a concrete pad and the like. The height of the structures or of the rider module from the ground may be measured with respect to the actual xe2x80x9cgroundxe2x80x9d, or to a depression below the structures, such as a river bed, ravine, valley, or the like. As used herein, the portion of the support structure to which the support line is attached, and the portion of the launch structure from which the launch line is attached will always be considered to be the xe2x80x9cupper portionxe2x80x9d of the structure.
In the preferred mode of operation, the rider module may be lifted directly to the top of the launch structure, and the support line and stabilization line secured to the rider module or other attachment. Then, the crew may launch him or herself from the launch structure in the rider module. In such an operation, the support line and stabilization line will be raised to the top of the launch structure by the launch line. This mode of operation will allow the support and stabilization lines to have a substantial amount of slack, thus making the initial part of the ride vertical rather than curved. By proper calculation of height and elasticity, the use of bungee support and stabilization lines would add further vertical drop to the ride. An elevator may be used to carry the riders to the top of the launch structure.
Alternatively, two support lines, or just a single support line could be used. It is preferred to use at least as many stabilization lines as support lines since the stabilization lines function also as backup safety lines for the unlikely event of support line failure.
In yet another embodiment, a plurality of rider modules may be supported from a single support structure. Each rider module is then operated from its respective launch tower and a launch line.
These and other aspects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, showing the contemplated novel construction, combination, and elements as herein described, and more particularly defined by the appended claims, it, being understood that changes in the precise embodiments to the herein disclosed invention are meant to be included as coming within the scope of the claims, except insofar as they may be precluded by the prior art.